iRule app turns iPhones into universal remotes

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Wish your remote control was as easy to find as your cell phone? Farmington Hills-based iRule solved that problem by turning smartphones into part-time remote controls for TVs and entertainment systems.

Three-year-old iRule has created a smartphone app and support system that allows people to control their entertainment systems with a click of a mobile device. The idea is the creation of a couple of techies having fun with technology on the side.

"The whole business started as a hobby in our spare time," says Itai Bengal, CEO of iRule. "In a few months, without any marketing, we were doing more business than we ever imagined."

Today the company employs four people and five independent contractors. All of its personnel growth (two employees and the independent contractors) came over the last year. The company now sells thousands of its remote control apps and support systems in 17 countries with dozens of installers who know how to bring life to the system.

"We're seeing a tremendous level of growth right now," Bengal says. "We're planning to expand into the Android platform, too."